Sympathy
by TiffanySK
Summary: "The man knew that Daniel harbored a hero complex, but he had never seen him in such agony because of it."


(A/N) Umm…Hi.

So, this is my first Fanfiction story. I'll get that one out of the way first.

Anyway, I got the idea for this little one-shot from pearl84's _"Checkmate"._ I really enjoyed the story and, since I also like to write, I decided to try a DP fic of my own. I've had this story saved on my laptop for a while now, but I've put off getting a FanFiction account and uploading it because I rarely ever let people read what I write. I want the constructive criticism, though, so I can make my stories better.

**I in no way own Danny Phantom. Not at all.**

Okay, enough stalling. Here goes nothing.

* * *

His eyes opened. Every part of his being begged him to rest, but he couldn't. Not now.

Vlad stared at the guest room ceiling looming over him. FentonWorks was eerily still. Of course, such a palpable air of silence was hardly unfamiliar to someone such as him.

Needless to say, Jack had enthusiastically obliged when Vlad asked to spend a few nights in Amity Park with his "college pal". Little did the fat idiot realize that his visit had a very different motive.

When Valerie's father locked her ghost hunting equipment away after the incident with Pariah Dark, Vlad had no way of keeping records on Daniel's ghost persona. The only reason he was staying in this sorry excuse for a city to keep an eye on the younger hybrid.

You know the saying. If you want something done right, you must do it yourself.

Naturally, Daniel didn't take kindly to this. Around seven o'clock, he stalked out of the room where Vlad was conversing with the boy's parents and up the stairs, mumbling something along the lines of "I know what you're up to" as he passed the man on the way out. He sensed Daniel's transformation and mentally accounted him leaving the house through the second-story window.

That had been four hours ago.

He hadn't returned by the time dinner was served. Jasmine simply stated that he was doing homework and went back to her food, concern lining her eyes.

Even now Daniel's whereabouts were a mystery, for at this point he was too far away for Vlad to track with his ghost sense.

Realizing that his attempts at sleep were futile, Vlad left the guest room, half-walking, half-gliding down the steps. He entered the kitchen and seated himself at the circular dining table, eyeing the nearly invisible camera he had installed a few months ago.

Vlad sat wordlessly for another hour before he felt Daniel enter the house's vicinity. He noticed a faint flash of light from upstairs, and, after a few seconds, the boy himself at the top of the flight. Still sitting in the dark, the man turned himself invisible, having no desire to be seen and interrogated at the moment.

Daniel limped down uneasily, a short hiss of pain following each step. Vlad soon discerned the cause: the teen's right ankle, turned almost completely backwards.

As Daniel slowly neared, Vlad couldn't help but take into account the other injuries received from the battle. There was a long, unsightly gash across his face that that passed over one of his eyes; so deep, he noted, that it was a miracle the child's eyelid was still holding itself together. His torso bore four sizeable lacerations (visible through the threadbare shirt he insisted on wearing) over a background of oddly patterned bruises. Then there was the lower part of his left arm-so twisted and marred that a jagged piece of bone protruded through the skin, allowing blood to trickle freely through his fingers.

The younger hybrid made his way into the kitchen, stopping just in front of the table where Vlad resided. For a moment, he thought the boy was aware of his presence.

Alas, he wasn't.

Cautiously, the boy phased the upper half of his body through a certain place in the floor, retrieving a first-aid kit from below the house. He managed to place it on the table, then slumped into the nearest chair and got to work.

With a small cry and a sickening crack, Daniel forced his ankle back into place with his functional arm. He did his best to bite back the pain, tears forming in his eyes.

Vlad winced.

The teen tensed his jaw and began wrapping his head unceremoniously with a wad of gauze. Blood quickly seeped through the white fabric, but he ignored the annoyance and gently removed his shirt to bandage his tattered chest.

The man knew that Daniel harbored a hero complex, but he had never seen him in such agony because of it. How many nights had he spent doing exactly what he was now, hoping that no one would find him and that he wouldn't receive lasting damage? Vlad silently examined the boy's listless blue eyes; the same ones that had been filled with such animation and vivacity when he had first seen them.

The damage was already done.

Vlad could tell the child had intentionally saved the worst for last. Daniel wiped off the crimson on his hands and clenched his teeth, preparing for the inevitable.

The older hybrid closed his eyes. No amount of the teen's damned morals could justify _this._ At this rate, it wouldn't be long before his thoughtlessness got him killed.

_**Thunk.**_

Warily, the man turned his head to find the source of the noise. Halfway through his attempt at bandaging his revolting appendage, Daniel lay unconscious from the pain, his head resting on the table. It was then that Vlad decided to intervene.

Taking hold of the gauze himself, he finished what the boy had started, holding his breath against the nauseating smell of blood and ectoplasm. Vlad knew that simply bandaging the wound was no way to treat a compound fracture, but a ghost's body could heal itself in incredible ways. He would be fine by sunrise.

He took a step back and sighed heavily. Insolent child. What on earth did he think he was getting himself into? It was often sheer luck Daniel didn't die in these fights. Perhaps he could hold his own against the weaker specters that regularly haunted Amity, but when the _stronger _ones decided to have a turn…

A solemn frown passed over his features.

Carefully, Vlad took hold of the younger hybrid and lifted him into the air, phasing them both through the second-story floor and into the teen's room. He placed the unmoving boy on the wrinkled sheets, pulling a purple coverlet over his battered form.

"Goodnight, dear boy."

* * *

(A/N) Well, that's it. I know it moves kind of fast, but I'm bad at writing filler (once again, constructive criticism please; I need it).

Just so you guys know, I'm using pearl84's take on the whole ghost sense thing: Vlad has an internal ghost sense and can sense Danny, but Danny can't sense Vlad.

Anywho, please leave reviews and tell me what you think, because I would very much like to know. Flame me if you think I deserve it, but I still want your thoughts!


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